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Would love some help deciding between these 3 (seemingly all phenomenal) amps from their reviews

chef_

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Hey, building my first 2.1 system, starting with 2.0 for now. I'm in an apartment and I don't know yet how well bass carries into my neighbors' rooms, so I'll have to play with the 2.0 and see if they hear it before I commit to the subs.

Right now I'm looking at amps. I started in car audio so I know my preference in terms of power (don't need much of it). I'm looking at amps in around a $1k budget for 4 amp channels (which is more than doable, seems I can land comfortably around $500).

The issue now is that it seems I have too many options. I've read the most recent 40 amplifier reviews as well as the 40 reviews with the best SINAD (not the be all and end all, but it's readily available as all the blue ones). There are around 150 that I didn't read but I figure I probably got to the ones most worth reading (as well as some tube amps, you can't win em all). I'm planning to use DSP simply because I like playing with tuning and I find it interesting, I know it adds less to a home than a car but I think it's fun. Assuming the DSP is RCA out (most >4 channel DSPs seem to be), these appear to be fit the bill perfectly:
  • Topping PA5 II (amirm review)
  • 3e Audio A5 (amirm review)
  • (Topping) TP RA3 (amirm review)
Leaning toward the latter 2 because I've read some reviews on poor reliability of the Topping PA5, and the II is new and hasn't had time to prove that it's better as far as I can tell. That said I don't know what else to think of to make the final distinction - perhaps the 3e audio A5 simply because it's smaller? I'm not worried about the external power source, I'll be building either stands or the full speakers so I can plan around it (have woodworking experience).

Any other reviews I should read? I figure my quick sweep covered the bulk of the ones that fit my use case. Also, any advice on what to use to differentiate between any of the 3 (seemingly phenomenal) options I'm considering?
 
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As far as "specs" I'd mainly be concerned with power. I expect frequency response to be flat, and fingers-crossed the noise will be inaudible. Higher-power "pro" amps often have a cooling fan that makes acoustic noise and some people find that objectionable.

as well as some tube amps
Tubes have been outdated for about half a century. They have no inherent advantage and some potential disadvantages. Guitar players tend to favor tube amps for they way they sound when over-driven into distortion but guitar amps aren't hi-fi and we don't want distortion at all (except perhaps distortion that was recorded from a guitar amp as part of the performance).
 
Hi and welcome to ASR. :)

Out of the 3 listed, I would probably get the 3e Audio A5. All 3 are reasonable choices though.


JSmith
 
Was joking about the tube amps - I meant that in the most recent 40 reviews, there are some relevant amps, as well as some tube amps lol

With my listening habits (never listen above around 75-80dB spl above 80hz, bass a bit higher because it has to be audible over road noise) I don't really need much of any power.

Just replied to the welcome post - my bad for missing it :)

What's the reasoning for the 3e Audio A5 over the other two? It was my lean as it's small and doesn't seem to have any reliability issues, but I'm curious if there's anything else you're thinking of to differentiate?
 
What's the reasoning for the 3e Audio A5 over the other two?
I wasn't going to go into that too much, as more opinion that anything else... I think the 3e Audio amp is better designed in regards to thermal management. Even though the issues with the PA5 were generally resolved in the PA5 II, the whole issue doesn't fill me with confidence.


JSmith
 
Makes sense. I'm pretty much decided, then. Last thing I'm wondering about is this graph:

1753063084627.png


I don't have a clear idea what "good" looks like in this graph. I see the other ones I posted have similar measurements, watched amirm's video and it seems as though this is good, but also see graphs like that of the Topping B100 where no discernible noise is measured on any curve. How can I interpret what I'm seeing in this graph?
 
None are particularly powerful, and if that were the goal then none would be on my shopping list. What do you actually need?
 
Specified in my original post that I don't need much power. Basically just looking for fidelity and wanted to check that I was looking at the right stuff in reviews and understanding everything I saw. I just want to hear my music and not my amplifier
 
Choose the one that appeals to you the most.
2 of them are small the other one is 19inch.
The 19 inch has volume control display which looks cool.
Technically they are all similar both in power as well as performance.

Longevity/build quality .... no one can say which one will work the longest... besides you might be replacing it with the next best thing after a few years anyway.
 
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besides you might be replacing it with the next best thing after a few years anyway.
Why? They're all perfectly transparent amplifiers. If they don't have any reliability issues, the power is sufficient for OP's needs, and he doesn't need any other features, I don't see why they would want to replace it with a "better" one.
If, on the other hand, it's a functionality issue, it's best to look for something that has the required features. Luckily, these days, amplification isn't a problem anymore.
If it were up to me, I'd get a Wiim Amp Pro and that's it.
 
I don't see why they would want to replace it with a "better" one.
Human nature ... FOMO... or one of the amps/power supplies giving up the ghost.
 
Funny, I just recommended a Wiim Amp Pro to my friend who wants a desktop setup, I figured I should save him the effort of a DAC and other external components. It was on my list as well just has some features I don't personally need, good rec for sure though. I don't have any FOMO or desire to upgrade lol unless something breaks, I do know that I might one day want more power though and in that case there are some excellent (but more expensive) options

How's the resale market for these? Haven't bought any secondhand home audio equipment yet but if it's anything like cars then they hold their value pretty well / trustworthy to get secondhand
 
What are your sources? What are your speakers? Why four channels?
 
I've never bought an amp becasue it specs well. anymore they ALL spec well, for the most part. I look at quality, the number, and type of, inputs, the layout of the controls, the build quality of the speaker terminals, the appearance, and yes, the price.
 
Source gonna likely be a Minidsp Flex Eight, need four channels for fully active 2.0 and the other DSP channels will eventually go to subs

Don't need any controls or features because I'll be bypassing all of the controls for DSP anyway

Appreciate the advice
 
If you don't need to drive loads significantly lower than 4R you could save some money by picking the A5se instead of the A5.
 
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